Concussed Boston Bruins center Marc Savard is having "real memory problems and he's quite worried about it," a source told ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun.
Savard was placed on long-term injured reserve in early February with his second concussion in less than a year. He was injured in the Bruins' Jan. 22 game against Colorado, when he was checked into the end boards' glass by former teammate Matt Hunwick. Savard also sustained a concussion against Pittsburgh on March 7, 2010. He did not return from that injury until the second round of the playoffs and missed the first 23 games of this season.
Savard had two goals and eight assists in 25 games this season and 207 goals and 499 assists in a 13-year career that also includes stops with the New York Rangers, Calgary Flames and Atlanta Thrashers. He signed with Boston as a free agent in 2006 and was re-signed in 2009 to a seven-year extension that takes him through the 2016-17 season.
In February, Savard said it was too early to decide whether he would be able to return.
"I'm not going to make any decision about my future until I get some more medical stuff done. I've just got to be patient going forward," he said. "My agent talked to me a lot, and he gave me time to think about a lot of things. It's going to be tough, especially watching them play."
Savard's first concussion was the result of a check by Penguins forward Matt Cooke, who is currently suspended for the remainder of the regular season and the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for elbowing defenseman Ryan McDonagh of the Rangers in the head. The play led the NHL to outlaw blindside hits to the head.
Savard missed the last 18 games of the regular season but returned for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against Philadelphia.
The Bruins are more familiar than most with the effects of concussions. In 2008, forward Patrice Bergeron went out with a concussion and did not return for almost a full year.
Savard described many of the same symptoms as Bergeron: The way he is sleepy all the time, and how things seem to move slower.
Over the offseason, his post-concussion syndrome returned -- including a bout with depression -- and he missed 23 more games at the start of 2010-11. When he did play, he did not appear to be the same playmaker who led Boston in scoring in his only three healthy seasons with the team.
Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.